Bleach Racer
by Mr.Chibbles
Summary: Didn't I have a better title for this? Whatever. Combines Ridge Racer Type 4 with Bleach, AU obviously. Ichihime involved. Rating may change over time.
1. Prologue

**Ellow there people :3 If you couldn't tell, this is my first story –well, first story that wasn't made for school purpose. Anyway, this story is partly going to be based off the vague story line of, my most favorite racing game of all time, Ridge Racer Type 4. Though, obviously, I'm going to be adding my own parts to the story using the characters from Bleach and, obviously, I am rambling a bit here, but bare with me.**

**Now, just as an early warning, there may be much OOCness, but it's an AU so lighten up, will ya? There will also be some Ichihime, and soon, maybe a lot of it he he he. **

**Since this is based off RR4, this takes place in 1999 in a variety of locations; for those who have played the game, you should already know most about where this is going. Honestly, how has no one thought of combining the two yet? (Or at least I hope not). **

**In all actuality, I made this story for my own entertainment, but if you choose to read it, by all means, go ahead. I just always wondered what it would be like if Bleach was about racing.**

**But before I keep going on and on about my fantasies, I'll just let you read it.**

**So now, without further ado, I present to you, the Prologue.**

* * *

"I don't know what corporate was thinking sending a rookie, punk like you to race for us. Well, I guess it's expected since it _is_ our first year racing. What's your name? I'm Kuchiki Rukia by the way."

"Kurosaki Ichigo. Shouldn't you already know that?"

"How am I supposed to know some stranger's name if they just walked in here, baka!"

"Well I would think this 'corporate' of yours would send you some sort of information, midget! Actually, since when was there a 'corporate'. What the hell kind of un-detailed prologue is this!"

"Huh?"

"Never mind." he mumbled before saying, "So what team is this exactly?"

"Please tell me you're joking, this is ZRC."

"The hell is that supposed to mean?" he said, practically yelling.

"It stands for Zangetsu Racing Club, and quit capslocking on me."

"I was not capslocking, did you not see the dialogue before this!"

"What are you even talking about?"

"…"

"Well anyway, just go home and we'll call you before the first race starts. I just hope he won't act as weird by then." the last part she had murmured to herself.

"I can hear you, you know?"

"Then I also hope you obtain some listening skills. Didn't I tell you to go home?" She said as she started to push him out the door.

"Alright, alright, I'm going. Oi, quit pushing!"

* * *

**Yeah, just dialogue right now. To be honest, I'm not very good when it comes to writing the details of anything. Hmm… That's going to make things complicated XD**

**And before any of you get the wrong idea, don't expect anything great. I am, indeed, an amateur.**

**Also, I may be slow when it comes to updating this. **_**Damn you school and your ways! **_**I'm also just lazy :/**


	2. Helter Skelter

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Bleach or its characters and I also do NOT own Ridge Racer Type 4.**

* * *

**Helter Skelter**

**Saturday, 01 May 1999**

It's been a few days since Ichigo joined with ZRC as their driver and, in those few days, he hasn't done much. They needed more time to work on the car he'll be racing in.

He tried to go back to the garage on one occasion, only to be stopped by Rukia. Something about not wanting him to make the garage even more crowded than it already was and having him get in the way.

'_Damn, how much longer.' _He couldn't stand having to wait so long. But right now, all he could do is just lay on the bed of his small, plain apartment.

He had just eaten breakfast and was waiting for the phone by his bed to ring. _'She could have at least said when she was going to call.'_ And just when he thought that, the phone started to ring.

He picked it up and waited to hear someone's voice. There was a short silence till Ichigo broke it saying, "Well?" then the person on the other end finally spoke up, _"Baka, you're supposed to say 'Hello' or at least some sort of greeting!"_

"Fine, whatever, hello, what is it?"

"_You can come to the garage now, it's time to go."_

"You could have just said that to begin with."

"_Just get your ass over here, already!"_

Before she could say more, he hung up and dashed out the door, not wanting to waste any more time getting yelled at over the phone.

* * *

"So what did you need me for?" Ichigo asked as he walked towards Rukia, now outside of the garage. "You obviously don't remember things to well." She replied in a sort of sigh before saying, "Anyway, we can't talk too much right now; we need to get to the track, so get in the truck."

"Truck?" while dumbly saying that, he slowly turned his head to find a white cargo truck with ZRC written on the side a few feet away.

"Just hurry up, and get in!" she exclaimed as she was starting to push him to the truck. "Oi, okay, I'm going! And stop pushing me!" So with that, they got in and left for the city Yokohama.

The drive wasn't very long, considering that the garage wasn't very far off from the city. Once the truck was parked, the workers brought out the car so it could be set to its position.

The car itself was simple in design. More like an ordinary street car, in terms of model. It was pure white with two blood red stripes that came to a point on both sides of the car and a big ZRC logo on the hood. The only thing that seemed to obscure the design, were some of the sponsor stickers on the end.

"You like it? We finished it up yesterday." Rukia said while she was standing beside Ichigo, as they were watching the workers set the car into place.

"Is it fast?"

"You tell me. Now hurry and get in the car before they start the race without you. Oh, and one bit of advice, don't lose."

* * *

Only a few more minutes till the race starts. The waiting was starting to get on Ichigo's nerves; all he could do was sit in the car and death grip the steering wheel, while the car was running and ready to drive.

Maybe it was the crowd that was irritating him. _'Why the hell are they so damn loud.' _It was just a race, not to mention it was only the first race in the first heat, nothing too special about it. Or he could just have a case of anxiety. But either way, he couldn't stand it.

Just seconds more.

With all racers starting to reeve their cars, just itching to go.

Finally, the signal is given and they all take off.

There weren't very many drivers, only eight or so, including Ichigo, but he could care less about the amount. All he was focused on was the road ahead and the drivers he would leave in the dust.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the sidelines, Rukia was standing there, taping her foot in a nervous motion. She found herself questioning, yet again, if it was a good idea to get back into the life of racing. The things that she had failed to do in the past still haunted her and she just couldn't live with herself if the past were to repeat itself.

She would have continued to think these thoughts, if it weren't for a certain scarlet haired man startling her from behind. "Renji, how many times do I have to tell you to _not_ sneak-up behind me!"

"Take it easy, if you weren't so deep in thought you would have noticed me ages ago." He said as he raised his hands up in a non-offensive fashion.

"I can't just 'take it easy'! There's a race going on, I can't just slack off like you, obviously, and shouldn't you be with your team right now!"

"I'm taking a break. Relax; it won't help if you're all hyped up."

"Fine, I'll tr- wait, how can you take a break, you're the manager, baka!"

"They'll be fine; they don't listen to me anyway."

"Maybe 'cause you're a slacker."

"Tch, that's hardly the case. They just hate newbies."

"You're telling me."

By the time the conversation ended between the two, Ichigo was already on the final stretch. There wasn't a single problem throughout the entire race. Well, except for the one driver that seemed to be neck and neck with him throughout the final lap, but by the time they crossed the finish line, Ichigo had the lead.

He pulled to the side, as did some of the others, and got out of the car. It felt like it's been ages that he had been in that car. Even with the yelling crowd around him, he could still hear his ears ringing. He seemed to be in a dazed state, but he quickly snapped out of it and started to go to where Rukia was standing.

Once he got there Rukia asked "So, how was it?"

"Good, weren't you watching?"

"I meant the car, was it fast enough for you?"

He shrugged, "Could be faster."

"Well remember, it's only the first heat, you'll get plenty of speed later."

"What am I, a ghost?" Renji said as he was tired of getting ignored.

"Oh, sorry, I thought you went back to your team like a good little manager." She said with a smirk.

"Why you-"

She cut him off saying, "Ichigo, this is Abarai Renji, he's the manager of SSS."

"Huh?"

Renji rolled his eyes, "Like he knows. It stands for Super Shunpo Squad."

"What kind of name is that?"

"It's not like I came up with the name, corporate did."

'_Again with this 'corporate.'' _Ichigo thought to himself.

"Anyway, Ichigo, it looks like they got the car in the truck. We'll see you later Renji."

"Cya"

* * *

**That's all I got for now. This probably could have gone better, but idk you tell me. **

**Also, it was hard to come up with a name for Renji's team, I was trying to make it like the MMM team in RR4 but idk if that was a good idea XD**

**Well, try not to be too harsh with your reviews, 'kay.**


	3. Out of Blue

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Bleach and its characters and I do NOT own Ridge Racer Type 4**

* * *

**Out of Blue**

**Saturday, 15 May 1999**

"Yo, Rukia." Ichigo said as he walked into the garage. "You're here a bit early; I'm surprised you remembered what time to be here."Rukia said over her shoulder, looking away from the large piece of paper on the desk in the corner.

Ignoring the jib, he replied saying, "I came 'cause there was nothing better to do." He looked off to the distance, "So what are they doing to the car."

"They're just fixing it up; it should be ready by the time we have to get going."

"Fixing it up? It wasn't broken, was it?"

"No. Corporate just likes to keep use busy."

"Uh-huh," he uttered slowly, confused by how 'Corporate' could do that. "So where's the race being held this time."

"It's being held in same town as last time, it's practically the same course."

"This should be easy then." He said as he sat in a chair, leaning back in it.

"Don't get cocky now, there's still a long ways to go."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Is there anything to drink around here?"

"Baka…" she whispered to herself turning her head back to look at the paper.

* * *

A few hours later, everyone was back at the track. It was the same as last time. Same anxiety, same patience, same irritability. But Ichigo tried to not to let it get to him as he steeled his nerves, waiting for the signal.

And like that, it was time to go.

* * *

"Oh, I knew I shouldn't have worn high heels." The women said as she took off the broken foot wear and put it up to eye level to examine it. "The one time I wear them…"she said pouting a bit.

She took off the other one and started to walk almost barefoot, since she was still wearing her stockings. As she walked with her high heels in hold, she started to wonder, '_Where is everyone, there's not a person in sight.'_

Just when she thought that, a car or two zipped by. She stood there dumbfounded by the speed of them but it wasn't for long till she started walking again. _'This town's just full of law breakers.'_

She was just a tourist from Karakura town, the only reason she came here was to see some of the race live. Her town wasn't far from where it was being held, and if it gave her something entertaining to do, then why not come? The only problem was that she didn't know where it was exactly. _'I should have asked Tatsuki to come with me.' _she thought with a sigh, which was muffled by a few more cars.

She continued walking, having a few cars pass by her from time to time for a while till eventually, to her surprise, one of the cars stopped beside her. She stared for a second, but when she looked closer she saw someone gesture their hand, like they were telling her to get in.

Without thinking, she quickly gets in. After sitting there for a moment as the car started picking up its speed, she just realized, _'Wait, what was I thinking, I'm being kidnapped!'_

The auburn haired women knew her air-headedness would get the better of her, even Tatsuki warned her of that. _'But not like this…'_

She turned her head to look at her supposed kidnapper only to think, _'Maybe it's not so bad getting kidnapped by him.' _The man glancedat her, getting the feeling of being stared at, and he, surprisingly, found himself trying to hold back a blush.

Finally, he spoke up, "Sorry," he uttered while keeping his eyes to the road, "It's just that… when I passed by you once… I just didn't like the thought of having you walking near a bunch of… speeding hunks of metal." He said as he paused a few times to turn sharply.

"Oh, well… thank you, I got kind of lost when I was looking for… something, and one of my high heels broke. So… I just kept walking, hoping I'd find it heh-heh."She said while rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "Can I… ask you a question?" she asked shyly.

He couldn't help but smirk and say, "You just did, didn't you?"

She giggled slightly, "I mean… a different question."

"Go ahead."

"Um… why are you driving so fast?"

This time he turned his head to look at her a bit shocked. She blushed a little when her eyes meet his amber ones. He turned back to look at the road, "Are we being… chased?" She asked when he didn't answer immediately.

He chuckled lightly before saying, "No… at least not in the way that you might mean, we're in a race right now."

"Eh?"

"You know… the Grand Prix that everyone talks about."

"Oh, I'm so sorry!"

"What for?" he said, being caught off guard by the sudden apology.

"Well… if you hadn't have stopped to pick me up… you'd be in the lead." She explained as she started to look down at her lap.

"Don't worry about it besides," she looked up at the racer, "having you here is _way_ better than driving alone."He said, turning his head to her.

She had to turn away quickly to hide the fact that she was blushing profusely from his statement. "Oi, what's wrong?"He asked after having seen the action."N-nothing!"

He returned his gaze to the road, "Okay, but just so you know, we're about to cross the finish line."

She looked up to see, but by the time she did, they had already passed it.

* * *

Once they had pulled up to the side, they quickly got out of the car. The women kept looking around with so many fantasies that she had dreamed up over the years coming back to her with similar scenes like this one. But, before she could wonder too far, someone grabbed her wrist. She quickly turned around only to find a familiar pair of amber eyes looking at her.

"Don't do that. Now come with me."He said, looking at her seriously. She followed him for awhile until she stopped abruptly, in turn stopping him since he was still pulling on her arm. "What is it?" he asked her while looking confused as to why she stopped, "You haven't told me your name yet."

His gaze softened and he turned to fully face her. "It's Kurosaki Ichigo, and as long as we're on the subject, you should tell me yours."

"Inoue Orihime."She said smiling at him. When she did, his lips started to curve upwards. He would have continued to gaze at her till she spoke up.

"Ano… Kurosaki-kun"

"What?" He said being broken out of his daze.

"Could you… let go of m-me?"

He looked down to find that he was still, absentmindedly, holding her wrist. After doing so, he quickly let go of her while uttering an apology and motioned her to continue following him.

They swiftly got to their destination, only to be bombarded with questions. "What the hell was that? Do you know how dangerous that was? Who is she? Why did you take her? Are you always going to do that? Dammit, you baka, you almost cost us the race!"

"Damn, Rukia, let the man answer," Renji said in a rather calm tone. All Rukia did was huff out of anger and headed to the truck saying she'll wait there. "Anyways, congratulations on winning." Renji said plainly.

"Will she be alright?" Orihime asked in a worried tone.

"She'll be fine; she just overreacts too much."

"Oh" she said turning her gaze to the ground, mostly out of guilt.

"Don't worry about It, Inoue." Ichigo said, hoping it would help her feel less bad.

"So, Ichigo, why _did_ you take her?" Renji said with a sly grin on his face.

Both Ichigo and Orihime looked at him when he had said that. So, before Renji could say something suggestive, Ichigo quickly gave an answer, "W-well, it was dangerous for her to just be walking out there, so I p-picked her up."He said as he was rubbing the back of his neck. _'Dammit, what the hell am nervous for?' _He thought to himself.

"Whatever you've got to tell yourself. Cya." Renji said as he turned to walk back to his team before Ichigo could retort. Orihime waved bye and turned to ask the scowling man, "Who were those two people, Kurosaki-kun?"

"The jerk that just left was Abarai Renji and the other was Kuchiki Rukia."

"Well… they seem nice." She said in a bubbly tone as she looked up at Ichigo, who could only sigh at her declaration. Then a thought occurred to him, "What _were_ you looking for?"

"What do you mean?" She looked at him puzzled by his question.

"You said you were looking for something when we were driving, what was it?"

"Oh," she stifled a giggle before saying, "I was looking for where the race was being held, so I guess I should thank you for helping me."

"Don't mention it," he was going to say more till they both jumped at the sound of a loud horn being blown. The horn belonging to ZRC's Truck, right after, the two just realized that most of the crowd had left which made them able to hear Rukia yell, "Would you two love birds hurry up, I'm going to miss my shows!"

"Just give me a god damn minute, midget, your shows can wait!"He looked back at Orihime, who was staring at the truck with a noticeable blush on her face, and regrettably said, "I guess I should get going."

"Will we see each other again?" she asked without even thinking about what she had really just said.

"Maybe… my town's not that far from here."

"But, I don't live here, Kurosaki-kun"

"Then where do you live?" then he thought real quickly about that question. "Wait, don't answer that," he started to step backwards, "I'll just go now before I ask anymore stupid questions," but before he turned to run to the truck he quickly added "I'll see you some other time, I promise."

All she could do was watch and wave them good-bye as they drove away.

* * *

**Hooray for unrealisticness! :dummy: (Oh right, not deviantart.) Like it matters? It's a story. Seriously, are there even street races like that? Pfft, like I'd know.**

**This one took longer to make then the last chapter and the ending's so… mleh -_- This could have gone better. I try not to repeat words, but it doesn't help that I have a sucky vocabulary. (And according to MW, 'sucky' is not a word.) **

**My opinion might not count though, so hope you enjoyed the chapter :3**


	4. Before the 2nd Heat

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Bleach or its characters and I do NOT own Ridge Racer 4.**

* * *

**Before the 2****nd**** Heat**

**Wednesday, 30 June 1999**

It's been awhile since she had seen him, and, to Orihime's surprise, she was starting to miss him, even when she had respectively scolded herself for feeling that way. She shouldn't miss a complete stranger, it's a bad habit.

For now she'll just have to preoccupy herself until she could see him again, if she ever does, but there wasn't much she could do about it. The only way she could think of seeing him is to go to where the race was tomorrow. _'Though, I might just get lost again…' _once she thought that, she stopped in mid-step as she was walking through town. _'What am I thinking? I can't just go to some place just because Kurosaki-kun's there! That would make me a... a-a stalker.'_

"Why am I even thinking this!" she groaned loudly as she looked upwards without realizing that she had said that out loud, fortunately there were no people around to hear it. When she thankfully stopped with those thoughts, she looked around to see where she had ended up only to find that she was lost… again.

'_I swear this town's layout changes every day.'_ she thought as she continued to walk until coming across another intersection. This time though, something caught her eye, something big. It was the same white cargo truck with the big ZRC logo that Ichigo had left in that day. She saw it drive off and stop in front of a big concrete building not too far away from the intersection.

At first, she was going to continue walking in the opposite direction of the truck. Sure, she could possibly meet Ichigo again if she went towards it, but she didn't want to become the 'stalker' she thought she would be. No matter how ludicrous it sounds.

In the end she started to go towards the truck. Besides, what if it wasn't the same truck. _'Who am I kidding, what other truck could possibly have the same letters?'_ She completely froze when she heard a familiar voice yell at her for obstructing progress, even though she wasn't even that close to the vehicle or the building that appeared to have a board with the same acronym on it that was screwed into the wall.

She turned her head to find Rukia going towards her, "Hello, Kuchiki-san!" Rukia had ceased movement as she was a few feet away from the bubbly female. "How do you know my name, have we met?"

"Don't you remember? I was the reason you yelled at Kurosaki-kun since he stopped in the middle of that race." Then it finally clicked to Rukia.

"Oh, right… but I don't remember telling you my name."

"Kurosaki-kun told me after you left." She said cheerfully as she clasped her hands together.

"Yeah, sorry about leaving, he just got on my nerves performing a stupid stunt like that."

"That's okay you were just worried, that's all."

Rukia did a slight nod before glancing to the side as she saw the truck being put into position. "How about we continue this inside?" She said as she turned and started to walk towards the building.

* * *

Ichigo had done a lot over the short one month break, yet made no progress, with most of his time being consumed by trying to find a way to obtain some more money. _'Why the hell did people have to make this shit so complicated?' _He complained as he threw the newspaper on the end table and made his way from the living room to the kitchen to get something to drink. A walk from one room to the next wasn't too much effort, considering how small the place was. Actually, the apartment itself was more like one giant room with one smaller room as the bathroom.

Even in the beginning, he never did have a lot of money to actually buy a decent apartment, or much of anything for that matter, which is why he decided to race in the Grand Prix. He was tired of living in that awful hell-hole along with having financial problems, and if he won the Grand Prix, he would have enough to buy a better place and then some.

Though, that wasn't the only reason Ichigo joined. He had come to Karakura town to have a fresh start, and try to ditch his old reputation, and what better way to do it than to make a name for yourself somewhere else. _'Then again, the publicity might make things complicated. ' _He thought, making his way back to the couch that he had been previously sitting on, but before he could reach it his phone rang.

He placed his drink on the nightstand by his bed and picked up the phone. There wasn't a response at first, till he remembered what he was supposed to do. "Hello?"

"_Ichigo, it's Rukia."_

"Gee, never would have guessed. What do you want, the next race doesn't start yet."

"_I'm just making sure you haven't done anything stupid in the past few weeks to get yourself disqualified."_

Ichigo just rolled his eyes, "Don't tell me that you really called just to continue scolding me for stopping in the last race."

"_Fortunately, for you, I haven't. But speaking of that, I have someone here who wants to talk to you"_

He waited a few moments as he heard a few voices in the background. Even when he brought the phone really close to his ear, he couldn't make out much of what they were saying, except for someone saying that they didn't want to do something. Then a new voice came on the phone, _"K-Kurosaki-kun?"_

* * *

"_I-Inoue, is that you, how did you get over there?"_

"I walked." she said in a calm tone that she had managed to summon.

A sigh could be heard over the phone and he continued, _"That's not what I meant, Inoue, I mean how are you there? You said you lived in a different town."_

"I do and this is it." She stated happily.

Another sigh, _"I just wish you had told me that before. So why did you want to talk to me?"_

She started to fiddle with the phone cord and leaned back in the chair, "Well, I didn't _want_ to talk to you, I was sorta… forced."

There was no reply. Then she quickly corrected herself, along with flailing her free arm, even though he wouldn't see it, "N-no, wait, I mean, I don't mind talking to you, not at all," her voice quieted down, "It's just… I wasn't prepared to talk to you when Kuchiki-san threw me on."

"_Why would you need to prepare to talk to me?"_

"B-because I, uh, it's just that… it's been so long since I've seen you, that's all."

"_And what does _that_ have anything to do with it?"_

"It just does…"she stated faintly. There was a brief pause till Ichigo said, _"Then I guess I'll have to change that."_ She was about to say something against that, but she just wasn't fast enough to say it before she heard the 'click' of the phone being hung up.

* * *

It was only around 16:30 by the time Ichigo got to the garage. When he walked through the door, he was immediately greeted by Orihime. "Kurosaki-kun, I didn't know you were coming here, not saying that I _didn't_ guess you were coming, I just didn't think that's what you meant when you said that you were going to change it. How have you been? Can I get you anyth-"She cut herself off when Ichigo waved his hand at her awkwardly, not knowing how else to stop her rambling. "What, is something wrong?" she asked confused by the action. He shook his head, "No. It's just that you were talking so much and…" he trailed off, unsure of how to continue his explanation.

"Sorry. I was talking a bit fast, wasn't I? I do tend to ramble a lot, especially when I'm explaining something or telling one of my fantasies or when I'm apologizing or when I'm-"

"Inoue," Ichigo interrupted.

"Yes?"

"You're doing it again."

"Oh, right, sorry, do you want to see the new car?"

"New car?" He inquired as he raised a brow and started to look off into the distance to see a few people messing with it. He looked back at Orihime and said, "I don't think it's ready yet, Inoue."

"No, it's not," Rukia confirmed, "so why are you here?" She asked as she stopped walking over to them since she was in a secluded office a few moments ago.

"Can't I just come over for the hell of it?" he said as he turned to look at her.

She stomped her foot on the ground, "No, you can't, this is a place of business, plus you'll distract the workers!" Ichigo's scowl deepened, "How the _hell_ do I distract them?"

"Well, your hair's an eyesore to them." She stated pointedly.

"What?"

"You heard me." She said with a smirk.

"Ano…," Orihime started which caused the two to stop bickering and look at her, "I think your arguing is more distracting." She pointed to where the workers were. They were standing in front of the car watching them argue, finding it to be much more entertaining. "What the hell are you doing? Get back to work!"Rukia yelled as she swung a fist in the air.

They immediately got back to work –or at least pretended to work- considering not much needed to be done now. _'Bunch of slackers.' _Rukia insulted mentally as she looked back over to the other two.

"Your still here?" The question being directed towards Ichigo.

"Fine, I get it. See you all some other time." Ichigo said as he headed for the door. Once he left Rukia turned to face Orihime, who was looking at the same door, "You should probably go after him." She said as she headed to where the car was, "B-but Kuchiki-san" Orihime began, only to have her protest cut off when she saw Rukia look over her shoulder and add, "You know, to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

She continued her walk to the car and it wasn't long till she heard the loud clunk of the door being shut behind her.

* * *

Ichigo was already a good ways away from the garage, but it didn't take long for Orihime to catch up to him. Mostly since he had stopped to turn around to see who had called his name in the –almost- desolate town. "Inoue, what is it?" Ichigo asked, puzzled as to why she had ran to him.

Once she had finally caught her breath, she straightened up and answered happily, "I came to follow you."

"Huh?" He stared at her wide eyed not expecting that answer, especially not in that kind of wording. She shook her head as a blush started to appear on her face, "I meant, I c-came to walk with you," she paused for a moment before quickly adding, "I-If that's okay w-with you."

He gave a crooked smile, "Sure, but you do know I'm walking home, right?" while he stated that, they started walking, "You are? Where do you live? I bet it's somewhere nice, you are a racer and all." she said as she looked up at him. He let out a half sigh, "You'd be surprised, I don't make that much."

"You're not paid a lot?" Orihime asked giving him a questioning look of disbelief, "Basically." he said as if it were no big deal. She cast her gaze to the ground and it fell silent for a moment until Ichigo spoke up, "But, you know," she lifted her head to look at him, "If I win the Grand Prix, I'll practically be swimming in money." he met her gaze with an expression she hadn't seen before, it seemed to hold a mix of amusement and determination.

Her face lit up, "And maybe you'll have a pool made of gold and a diamond incrusted diving board!" she said in her usual upbeat tone. He failed to hold back his light laughter while she pouted, "What's so funny?"

Now with a grin on his face, he replied, "Sorry, I couldn't help it. Anyway, we're here." She turned to look at the apartment complex with pale yellow siding; it seemed to be about four stories tall.

"I didn't know you lived in an apartment, Kurosaki-kun." She said as she continued to gaze up at the building. "Wish I didn't." Ichigo stated drearily. She took her eyes off the building to look at the orange haired racer with a confused look, "What's so bad about living here?"

"Tch, aside from it being cramped, having constant plumbing issues, and the noisy neighbors, nothing." He said with his signature scowl. "I'm sure it's not that bad." She said only to be given a 'Oh-you-would-be-wrong' look, "Well, just you wait, once you win, you'll have plenty of money to find a nice place." She declared with confidence.

He smirked at that, "You say that as if I will win." She nodded, "Of course you'll win, your Ridge Racer."

"Who?"

"You know, the man without a care and is always there on time!" the auburn haired women exclaimed, ignoring the bewildered stare Ichigo was giving her.

All the proclaimed 'Ridge Racer' could do was run his fingers through his hair while he kept his gaze on her, even when she looked at the ground to hide a blush and added, "At least… that's what they say in the papers."

There was a moment of silence between the two, and not the comfortable kind. Fortunately, Ichigo broke it saying, "So… what do you want to do now?"

Being completely caught off guard by that question, all she could do is say, "Eh?" and stare at him. "I mean that I can't just leave you standing here."She tilted her head in inquiry, "Why not?"

"I'll… uh, feel bad if I just left you here," he explained as he was rubbing his neck nervously, _'Dammit, again with this.' _He thought before repeating, "So, what do you want to do?"

Orihime took her index finger to her chin, contemplating on what to do. Ichigo, honestly, couldn't believe it, _'She's actually thinking about it.'_ He just couldn't believe that she was actually considering doing something with someone she barely knew, _'Wait, who said it was with me? I should be back in my apartment watching Law & Order or something. The hell's wrong with me?'_ but his train of thought was cut short when she answered.

"I think I want to do what I was going to do before I got to the garage."

He raised a brow, "And what was that?"

"I was going to get un-lost."

"Un-lost?" he reiterated to get her to clarify.

She nodded, "I tend to get lost a lot, I always tell myself to stop daydreaming while walking but every time I walk, I start to daydream, and when I do that, I lose track of where I was going. I got lost earlier today, and I couldn't find my way back since."

"Were you going anywhere?"

"No, I just wanted to clear my head, though I'm still technically lost."

"Don't you know where you live?"

"I do, but I don't remember the way heh-heh" she said as she fidgeted a little.

Ichigo could only sweat drop and think, _'She's not kidding is she?' _he sighed, "Then call a cab." Her eyes widened at his statement and then she dropped her head, _'Why didn't I do that ages ago?' _she thought feeling stupid for not coming up with that idea. "Oi, you okay?" Ichigo said out of concern as to why she dropped her head like that. She snapped her head back up while holding back a blush, "H-Hai. Um, I-Is there a phone near here?"

His lips twitched with amusement, he didn't say anything; all he did was point to a pay phone a few feet behind her. She turned back to face him, nervously laughing, before she fully turned around to walk to the pay phone and call a taxi.

They sat on one of the steps of the complex waiting for the cab to come. During that time they carried on a conversation, well, more like Orihime talking about aliens and robots while Ichigo sits and listens.

The cab arrived moments later; they both said their good-byes as she entered the cab. He watched as she drove away and only when her cab was out of sight, did he start to make his way to his apartment.

* * *

**My endings suck -_- I keep thinking these chapters could be **_**way**_** better, oh well, nothings perfect. Maybe if I wasn't so lazy. I almost made this an endless chapter mleh, what's wrong with me?**

**At least apartments suck worse than my writing. They wouldn't be so bad if the neighbors would act like they have a brain.**

**I actually had to change a lot in this chapter (and possibly in the future chapters I already made -_-) since I thought it sounded… odd. But my opinion doesn't matter on this, so hope you enjoyed! :3**


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